Mould Inspection and damp survey in London Practice

My latest damp / mould inspection in London was in a former residential property which has been converted into a dental practice. The building is about 60-70 years and was originally used as a ground floor shop with upstairs accommodation. The building has been modified and extended over the years which contributed to the current problems.

It is quite frequent too find old converted and extended properties with a number of damp and mould related problems. This is mostly due to the ageing of the building but also to different construction techniques and variable workmanship employees during the history of the building.

The property I have visited had a number of rising damp issues mostly relating to the age of the building. All of these issues were fairly minor and were not causing any significant damage. More significant however were the penetrating damp and service leaks in the building resulting in significant deterioration in indoor air quality.

First and foremost, the buildings upper floor was affected by movement in the wall causing a section of the wall to move and thus opening a small crack in the brickwork. The gap was most visible on the upper floor of the building where it was not causing any problems apart of the visual. On the lower floor however, the water penetrating the building was causing some major mould problem, lot of wood rot and strong odours.

Cracked wall

In addition to the water penetrating from the outside the room had also leaking sink resulting into complete rotting of the sink cabinet, strong odours and lots of mould. The condition in the room became quite critical resulting in complains from visitors about odours and possible health risk associated with exposure to moulds.

Mould to plywood

Unfortunately, this was not the only issue in the property. The basement was partially flooded from a faulty water tank and faulty main water supply pipeline. The very high humidity levels in the basement cause all the timber floor to be saturated with water which was absorbed into the wood from the humid air. The moisture saturated wood has then become a perfect feeding ground for moulds.

Flooded basement causing mould

Due to the age of the building the water supply pipe was made of lead which is no longer considered suitable for transporting drinking water for well know health reasons.

Lead water pipe

Following the mould inspection of the property I have prepared a remediation plan for the building to remove the offending mould contamination a plan of repair works has been prepared and implemented resolving all of the identified issues.

Post byTomas Gabor

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